European Youth Award Festival Day 1 – Wrap up by Kenne deine Rechte

“We are at a tipping point regarding digital technology,” states Peter A. Bruck, Hon. President of ICNM and Initiator of EYA. This year, the European Youth Award has been awarded to young people in Europe for the 6th time. Anyone under the age of 33 who finds a digital solution to “underlying problems they encounter in their societies” has got a chance of winning the prestigious prize.

3 pm: The first day of #EYA2017 kicked off with a fun Get2Gether for the winners. Everyone is encouraged to learn from one another – to create a “micro network” – and socialise.

4:30 pm: Fun, busy and creative. That is how one could describe our workshop with Steffie Limere and Adam Montadon, the founders of the Factory of Imagination. After forming six groups and being given undoubtedly ridiculous but funny names, it was time to come up with solutions to various tasks. “We’d like to encourage you all to believe in anything you imagine”, was the powerful concluding statement.

6:30 pm: Everyone made their way to the Grazer Rathaus, where the 17 winning projects were introduced. A coding game to get women interested in technology, a platform which offers smart rehabilitation devices to people with movement disabilities and a webpage which helps integrate refugees were all part of the evening.

The first day of #EYA2017 was definitely a great start to the festival and we are excited to see what is coming next.